An Endurance ride is a timed test against the
clock of an individual horse/rider team’s ability to
traverse a marked, measured cross-county “trail”
over natural terrain consisting of a distance of
50 to 100 miles in one day.
Endurance riding was first developed in the early 1900s as a military test for cavalry mounts. Horses were required
to go on a 5-day, 300 mile (483 km) ride carrying at least 200 lbs. The cavalry test became a civilian sport in the
early 1950s. Over time the reduction of distance and time increased the number of riders and rides, and in 1978 the Federation Equestre
Internationale (FEI), the international governing body for World and Olympic equestrian events, recognized endurance
riding as an international sport. In 2006 over 353 FEI endurance
competitions were held in Europe,
Asia, and the American continents
incorporating over 49 countries
worldwide.
In the US the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) oversees
US international teams in FEI competition. The American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC)
is the official national governing body for endurance riding in North America. All endurance riders,
and all sanctioned endurance rides under the jurisdiction of the AERC, are bound by the rules and regulations of the AERC.
The AERC also maintains the ride points, lifetime mileage and awards database for each horse and rider entered in both
national and internationally sanctioned endurance rides.
The AERC sanctions more than 700 rides each year throughout the United States
and Canada.
As well as endurance rides the AERC
also offers a Limited Distance (LD) program. LD rides are anywhere from 25 to 35 miles in length. AERC rules allow 12 hours to complete a 50 mile ride, and 24 hours for a 100 mile ride. Limited Distance is allowed 6 hours for 25 miles. Ride time
is pre-determined incrementally by the ride distance. The ride time includes time on the trail, and time spent in the vet check.
The modern endurance ride is unique in the horse sport world as being one of the only group/individual sports that entire
families can participate
in by riding together as a group during the ride, yet compete as individuals. There is no rider minimum or maximum age limitation, and the AERC
awards program also offers special awards to families who have compiled the most miles in riding together.
Horses are required to pass a pre-ride vet check for soundness before they are allowed
to start. Endurance rides have manditory "holds" during the ride where horses must pulse down to meet a specific heart rate parameter -- anywhere from
60 to 68 bpm (beats pr minute) -- before they are then checked by qualified veterinarians to ensure the horses are fit to continue.
Horses that do not pulse down within a specified time, or fail to pass the vet check, are
pulled from the competition. Because of the nature of this sport every caution is taken to ensure the safety and health of the horses.
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2004 USA-East Cranberry Endurance Ride, Southern New Jersey, USA
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The ride begins as a group start when the trail is "opened" at a specific time to all riders in each mileage division.
The riders are then free to go at their own pace throughout the ride as long as they do not exceed the time limit
for their ride distance, or the cut-off times (if applicable) for the vet checks. Riders may run, walk, or jog alongside their horses
at any time throughout the ride. Endurance is a strategic
test of horsemanship.
Riders are challenged with regards to effective use
of pace and thorough knowledge of abilities and
level of fitness of their horse against the difficulty of the course/terrain/weather. All riders must conduct themselves according to AERC rules of sportsmanship. A rider can take up to a year or more
to train themselves and a horse to be ready to compete in a 50 mile ride, and several years to compete in a 100 mile ride or an FEI level event.
The
AERC website contains up-to-date
information on endurance rules and rides in the US and Canada, including horse and/or rider awards, points, recognition, and lifetime mileage
records.
